WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
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AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS
US President Donald Trump said tonight that a "very successful attack" had been carried out on three nuclear facilities in Iran, including the one at Fordow.
In a post on the social network Truth Social, Trump added: "All planes are safely on their way home" and congratulated "our great American warriors." At the end of the post, he said: "Now is the time for peace."
The action comes after more than a week of aerial clashes between Israel and Iran, in which there were deaths and injuries on both sides.
US warplanes dropped bombs on three nuclear facilities in Iran on Saturday, which Trump confirmed on Saturday evening, bringing the US military directly into the war, after days of uncertainty about whether the US would intervene.
“All aircraft are now out of Iranian airspace,” Trump announced, adding that the entire bomb load had been dropped on the Fordow facility, which is deep underground and crucial to Iran’s nuclear program.
The three facilities hit include Iran’s two main uranium enrichment centers: the mountainous Fordow facility and the larger Natanz facility, which Israel had already attacked with smaller weapons days earlier.
The third facility, near the ancient city of Isfahan, is believed to be where Iran stores highly enriched uranium, which is almost ready for a nuclear bomb, and which inspectors saw just two weeks ago, the New York Times reported.
Three senior Iranian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak, told Reuters they believed U.S. forces struck Fordow and Natanz at about 2:30 a.m. local time.
After more than a week of mixed messages, Trump, who has long said he would avoid American involvement in “forever wars,” has finally authorized an attack on Iran’s most heavily fortified nuclear facility. The goal, according to U.S. and Israeli officials, is to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb.
Iran, for its part, says it is developing its nuclear program solely for peaceful purposes.
Western attempts to end the conflict through diplomacy have so far failed.
In another post on social media, Trump wrote: “Ford is no more.”
The statement appeared to refer to the underground nuclear storage facility at Natanz. According to U.S. sources, B-2 bombers were previously dispatched to the island of Guam on Saturday, Reuters reported.
A U.S. official confirmed to Reuters that B-2 bombers took part in the attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities. It is not yet clear whether Israeli forces were involved in this latest attack, although the act has significantly expanded the conflict.
For days, Trump has been weighing whether to provide Israel with the powerful bombs needed to destroy Iran’s deeply buried uranium enrichment facilities, particularly the one at Fordow. Only the so-called “bunker buster” bombs in the US arsenal can penetrate that deep, and only US aircraft can carry them.
Israel and Iran, sworn enemies for decades, have been trading blows since June 13, when Israel launched a surprise attack on Iranian infrastructure, including nuclear facilities and military leaders. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the time that Israel had no choice if it wanted to prevent a nuclear “holocaust.”
Iran responded with its own missile strikes, but also by offering to resume talks on its nuclear program.
Just days earlier, the Trump administration had appeared to be trying to distance itself from the conflict.
“We are not involved in attacks on Iran, and our top priority is to protect American forces in the region,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
But Trump, while occasionally calling for peace, has become increasingly belligerent.
On Tuesday, he directly threatened Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, saying, “We know exactly where he is” and calling him “an easy target.” He added, “We’re not going to kill him — at least not yet.” But he warned, “Our patience is running out.”
Trump has called for Iran’s “total surrender.”
In a sign that the U.S. government is moving closer to a decision, Trump cut short his appearance at the G7 summit in Alberta, Canada, on Monday and returned to Washington abruptly, surprising U.S. allies.
“Much has been accomplished, but due to the situation in the Middle East, President Trump will be leaving the summit tonight, after dinner with heads of state,” White House spokeswoman Caroline Levitt said in a statement.
